John Grisham is one of the most prolific and beloved mystery writers today, still reaching the top of the bestseller lists with books like The Testament (1999) and King of Torts (2003). In recent times, he has also experimented with different genres, such as A Painted House (2001), a semi-autobiographical work, and Skipping Christmas (2001), a holiday narrative. This volume follows up the critical analysis of Grisham's work in John Grisham: A Critical Companion, examining his writing from 1997 to the present.

The 35 original essays in A Companion to Narrative Theory constitute the best available introduction to this vital and contested field of humanistic enquiry. The essays represent all the major critical approaches to narrative - narratological, rhetorical, feminist, post-structuralist, historicist - and investigate and debate the relations among them. In addition, they stretch the boundaries of the field by considering narratives in different disciplines, such as law and medicine, and in a variety of media, including film, music, and painting.

"Victory" is structurally more accessible than some of Conrads  other novels. The narrative technique does not obscure things as much as in some others. Second: the story can be read as a thriller and works well as such. Maybe most important: the hero is a positive guy. Heyst is an oddball, an outsider, but he is likable. He is no fallen angel like Kurtz, no contemptible fool like Almayer, no low life like the secret agent.
Joseph Conrad, born Jozef Teodor Konrad Korzeniowski, (1857-1924) was a Polish-born novelist who spent most of his adult life in Britain. He is regarded as one of the greatest English novelists, which is even more notable because he did not learn to speak English well until he was in his 20s. He is recognized as a master prose stylist.

Explaining each stage of development on the road to adulthood, these adorable books give beginning readers an animal's-eye view of growing up.
• Packed with colorful information, photographs, and first person text
• Fantastic animal facts accompany each stage of growth
• Narrative style makes subjects accessible to young readers

A Brief History of Peru provides a concise yet comprehensive narrative of Peruvian history from the first civilizations established on the slopes of the Andes around the second millennium BCE through the most recent social unrest and political developments. From the accomplishments of early civilizations that culminated in the great Inca Empire of the 14th to 16th centuries to Spanish conquest and colonization; from independence in 1821 to the election of centrist leader Alejandro Toledo for president in June 2001 Peru's history is presented in a clear narrative line and with a non-specialist audience in mind.